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Tuan: Space and Place: Humanistic Perspective 1975 Human Geography: Space and Place Lecture Two Readings Introduction: -

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“Space and place together define the nature of geography” > states that ‘spatial analysis or the explanation of spatial organisation is at the forefront of geographical research’ States that the interpretation of spatial elements requires an abstract and objective frame of thought, quantifiable data and ideally the language of mathematics Ad Hoc Committee of American Geographers (1965) asserted that “the modern science of geography derives its substance from man’s sense of place” Place has been given many definitions and meanings (Lukermann, 1964) As location: place is one unit among other units to which it is linked by a circulating net of connections and goes onto say that the analysis of location is subsumed under the geographer’s concept and analysis of space Then states ‘place is more substance than the word location suggests’ = it is a unique entity and a ‘special ensemble’ (Lukermann, 1964). “it has a history of meaning” Place ‘incarnates the experience and aspirations of people

A Humanistic Perspective: -

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“Humanistic studies contribute in addition towards self-consciousness, towards mans increasing awareness of the sources of his knowledge” States that every discipline has a ‘humanistic perspective’ as each discipline will have a subsection of philosophy and history > hp = states through this each discipline like physics and geography can ‘know itself’ i.e. understanding its origins of its concepts and its biases and its scholars etc (Wright 1966) “The study of space, from the humanistic perspective is thus the study of a person’s spatial feelings and ideas in the stream of experience” > goes onto explaining that experience is ‘the totality of means by which we come to know the world, we know the world through sensation, feeling, perception and conception (Oakeshott, 1993, Dardel 1952) Goes onto explaining the idea that ‘a geographer understanding of space is abstract’ > “abstract notions of space can be taught” Denotes that the ideas of space and place are crucial to studies specifically humanistic or cultural geography as they “yield to the techniques of spatial analysis” In humanistic tradition space and place have been studied from a historical standpoint and literary artistic perspectives for example a town can come alive through the artistry of a scholar who provides deep descriptions and uses sketches or photographs (Gilbert 1954) States we lack ‘spatial systematic analysis’ as goes onto saying whilst we may have learnt to appreciate spatial analysis and descriptive prose we have not yet mastered philosophical understanding as it lies beyond us (Mercer and Powell, 1972) > could be a critique into the fact we haven’t yet realised the philosophical meanings and attachments to space and place > however could argue that is outdated > new tech since then “The space that we perceive and construct, the space that provides cues for our behaviour, varies with the individual and cultural group. Mental maps different from person to person, and from culture to culture” (Hall, 1966) “It is common to assume that geometrical space is the objective reality, and that personal and cultural spaces are distortions” goes onto explaining that this geometrical space is a cultural space and it is a human construct which has allowed us to control nature to a degree deemed as impossible

Tuan: Space and Place: Humanistic Perspective 1975 -

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“If geometrical space is a new cultural and sophisticated construct what is the nature of man’s original pact with his world” States that original space has structure and orientation by virtue of presence of the human body and that original space is contact with the world that precedes thinking, then states it is not geometrical as it cannot be clearly known Visual perception, touch, movement and thought all together give us our characteristic sense of place > vision and touch allow us to physically perceive and engage with space and the world of objects whilst thought enhances our ability to recognise and structure objects “Space is oriented by each centre of consciousness, and primitive consciousness is more a question of ‘I am’ than ‘I think’. Near means at hand and High means too far to reach” (Heidegger, 1962)

Space and Time: -

Notion of distance involves near and far but also notions of time: past, present and future States that units of time are used to secure the meaning of long distances e.g. takes so many days to get from here to there Distance places can also mean places distant in time lying in the remote past or future In western society, distant place can suggest the idea of a distant past > something far away out of technological reach perhaps = behind in time

The primacy of time-

Apprehension of distance lies on measures of time > natures periods of night and day for example rest on the measures of time and provide measurements for calculating time Suggests that man has the energy to manipulate the world, but it depends on his biological energy > referring to time i.e. living timespan To phenomenologists time “is more fundamental than space, a belief that seems to rest on concern with nature of being”

The primacy of space-

Conceptualisation of this is based on the fact that you can comprehend space more so than you can time “Since the beginning of any duration has already been lost and we cannot go back in time to find it again” (Piaget 1971) Says biologically as children we understand space before time The experience and understanding of space are substantially the same as language (Whorf, 1952) > in this sense space is more basic to human experience than time which varies from people to people > can understand space in relation to language idea that each space is different to people, could go onto say space has boundaries like language barriers also exclusion

Space, biology and symbolism-

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Anthropological studies have allowed us to understand that people’s perceptions and behaviours in space vary massively whilst mathematics appear to ‘pull it out of a hat’ we need to remind ourselves that spatial perceptions and values are grounded on common traits in human biology and transcend arbitrariness of culture Although spatial concepts vary massively and so do behaviours states that ‘they are all rooted in the original pact between body and space’

Tuan: Space and Place: Humanistic Perspective 1975 -

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Talks about how from a younger age more inclined to choose - and I instead of / and \ “the bilateral organisation of the human body and direction of gravity have been suggested as the cause of this bias” > idea we are sensitive to vertical cues in the environment > direction upward against gravity is feeling that guides movement and has a feeling that leads to inscription of regions in space which we attach value too “to go up is to rise above our earth-bound origin towards the sky” Vertical elements in the environment provide stable cues for orientation as the body moves > vertical and horizontal figures are easier to distinguish than those which are orientated obliquely in different directions Gravity is the pervasive environment for all living things > animals and humans both want to try defying it > to move vertically is to make maximum effort = tf we have built a world on pervading every act and accomplishment from bodily postures to the verticality of buildings

Spatial References and the Ego-

Primitive measures of length are derived from parts of the body Measures of area are based on size of common objects However, nature doesn’t have suitable units of measuring distance or area Parts of body serve a model for spatial organisation > central Africa and south sea languages use nouns rather than prepositional terms to express spatial relations

Personal Experience Space-

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The structure and feelings of space are tied to the perceptual equipment experience, mood and purpose of the human individual We get to know the world through the possibilities and limitations of our senses Furthest space from us: visual space > dominated by small and indistinct objects > seems static but is it active Closest space to us: visual aural space > objects in it can be seen clearly and their noises are heard Next to body: affective zone which is accessible to the senses of smell and touch besides those of sight and hearing Characterising structure of space can also be done in forms of: past present and future > awareness of spatial relations of objects is never limited to the perceptions of the objects themselves >p present awareness itself is imbued with past experiences of movement and time with memories of past expenditures of energy and it is drawn toward the future Can be made to feel inadequate by what we find in spaces like tree with exceptional height can make us feel small and may seem distant and unapproachable

Place: Definition-

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In ordinary use place means two things: one’s position in society and also spatial location > study of status > sociology and study of location > geography Differentiation between word close causes issues in disciplines and relation to space and place: does it mean connection to someone/ something they are close, or does it mean distant like he is close to the window Marjorie Grene: suggests primary meaning of place is one’s position in society rather than more abstract understanding of location in space (1968)

Tuan: Space and Place: Humanistic Perspective 1975 -

Spatial location derives from position in society (Sorokin, 1964) People are defined first by their positions in society, their characteristic lifestyles follow Lifestyle refers to clothes people wear, food they eat and the places at which they live and work Place is more than location and more than spatial index of socio-economic status = it is a unique ensemble of traits that merits study in its own right

Meaning of Place-

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Spirit and personality: Key meaning in place lies the expressions that people use when they want to give it a greater sense of carrying emotional charge than location > people talk about, spirit, personality and sense of place Spirit: literal sense in the fact space is formless and profane except from the sites that stand out because spirits are believed to dwell in them > religious places/ sacred places > command awe Personality: suggests the unique: a human personality is fusion of natural and acquired traits > personality of place is composite of natural aspects like physique of land and the modifications endowed by human generations> according to Vidal de la Blanche (1903) France, the UK and Mexico have personality > regions acquired unique faces through the prolonged interaction between nature and man Personality has two aspects: one commands awe and the other evokes affection > one that commands awe appears as something sublime and objective existing independently of human needs and aspirations > powerful sacred spaces > Grand Canyon or Lourdes By contrast place that evokes affection has personality in same sense that old clothes have it > place with long association with human beings can take on familiar contours Region can be both cosy and sublimes and it is deeply humanised and yet physical Sense of place: Place may be said to have personality and spirit but only humans can have sense of place Sense of place demonstrated when people apply their moral and aesthetic discernment to sites and location Man is now said to modern times to have lost a sensitivity > fails to recognise place because of blandness of modern environment (place lessness > Massey) because of human dominance which has stunted the cultivation of place awareness Sense of place can be visual and aesthetic > limited point of view is that places are locations with visual impact States that visual perceptions of place to gain sense of place are limited as other senses offer deeper sensory engagement and attachment to place therefore get a real sense of place > require deep long engagement with environment We can begin to know a place subconsciously through touch and remembering smells for example “only possible to be fully aware of our attachment to place only when we have left it and can see it as a whole from a distance” Stability and Place: Argument behind travelling is the need to increase awareness of home as a place not just of exotic places To identity with the ambiance of a place is to lose its sense of unique identity ‘to be always on the move is to be placeless and to lose palace’

Tuan: Space and Place: Humanistic Perspective 1975 -

“A place is the compelling focus of a field, it is a small world the node at which activities converge “

Types of place: -

Public symbols or field of care Public symbols: tend to have high imaginability because often cater to the eye, command attention and awe Field of care: do not seek to project an image to the outsiders, they are conspicuous visually, evoke affection Easy to assign places as public symbols hw difficult to identify a place as files are care as not as easily distinguishable Many/ most places are public symbols > Arch of triumph > symbol as it is focus of bustling human rural activities, but it is also a field of care Cities can be both likewise with neighbourhoods Every place can be somewhat similar as they are each on their own way a small world> arch of triumph is like a small farm as both have and are ‘own world’

Public symbols: -

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In ancient world the ‘landscape was rich in sacred places’ (White 1967) In ancient Greece Strabo’s description suggests that you could hardly move or step outside for shrines or sacred spaces Belief in many cultures to speak of the spirits of places whereas modern secular society discourages belief in spirit however traces of it still exist in likes of preservationists in the need to preserve sacred or wilderness area s “Monument buildings is a characteristic activity of all high civilisations” (Johnson 1968) > since 19th century monument buildings have declined and with it the effort to generate national or local pride or create places of interest Majority of monuments represent heroes or commemorate them > public squares might have monuments in to represent history = sacred area Monuments and artworks and buildings are places because they can organise space into centres of meaning > people possess meaning and are centres of their own world Buildings and cities can have meanings because they are primary field of care and habitats for people who endow them with meaning over time Buildings and so forth can also be considered as works of art Most public symbols cannot survive the decay pf their particular cultural matrix > Stonehenge at once sacred now touristic overpowers > erosion or just also over time could suggest place becomes less important “Over time, most public symbols lose their status as places and merely clutter up space”

Fields of Care: -

Public symbols can be seen and known from the outside

Tuan: Space and Place: Humanistic Perspective 1975 -

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Filed of care by contrast carry few signs that declare their nature they can be known only from within Human beings establish field of care and networks in a physical setting (Wagner, 1972) Field of care emotionally tied to a physical setting Human relationships require material objects for sustenance and deepening Personality itself depends on a minimum material possession including possession of intimate space Youth gangs have strong interpersonal ties which have strong sense of limits of space > know where their ‘turf’ ends, and another begins yet they have no real affection to the place and show no means to protect it “Home is where ever we happen to be…place is a position in society as well as a location in space” Emotion felt among human beings finds expression and anchorage in things and places, it can be said to create things and places to the extent that they acquire extra meaning States that the loss of a bond can cause the loss of meaning in the environment > St Augustine left his birthplace and his closest friend died and he said “my heart is now darkened by grief and everywhere I looked I saw death; my native roots became a scene of torture” By contrast loss of bond can also cause heightening of sentimental attachment to material objects and places because they then seem the only means to which the dead can speak “Sense of place turns morbid when it depends wholly on the memory of past human relationships” Functional pattern of our lives is capable of establishing a sense of place > carrying out daily routines we go regularly from one point to another following paths so in time the links are imprinted in our perceptual systems and affects our bodily expectations Religious tie to place has completely almost disappeared from the modern world > traces of it are left in the rhetoric of nationalism in which the state itself is referred to as mother or father land (Gellner 1973) > religion is maintained by rites and celebrations these in turn strengthen the emotional links between people and sacred places = celebrations which take place in different time like seasons contribute to characters of places Progressive decline in sense of place is a result of demise of gods, the loosening of local networks of human concern with their intense emotional involvements that could have extended to place and loss of intimate contact with the physical setting in an age when people rarely walk, and decline of meaningful celebrations (James 1961) Unlike public symbols, fields of care lack visual identity > outsiders find it hard to recognise and delimit neighbourhoods which are a field of care (Keller 1968) Sense of place more serious when one is homesick, and one can only be homesick when one is no longer at home (Starobinski 1966) Residents sense and know when their world has an identity and a boundary when they feel threatened as a race wants to move in or out or when the area is targeted by highway construction for example (Suttles, 1972) Identity is defined in competition and in conflict with others > we owe our sense of being to supportive forces but also to those that pose a threat

What is a Place: -

Place can be as small as the corner of the room and as big as the earth itself > the earth is our place in the universe Location can become a place overnight through the ingenuity of architects and engineers

Tuan: Space and Place: Humanistic Perspective 1975 -

A monument creates place and a carnival transforms an abandoned yard or field into place Places are locations where people have long memories To many people places are homes, shopping centres and public squares > can be taken from drawing boards and planted onto the earth To poets and moralists’ places are also public symbols and fields of care which per time generate experience Places can indeed be both public symbols or fields of care, but the power of symbols depends on the human emotions that vibrate in a field of care...